Tell me what you like in an air powered Random Orbital Sander...

[Jim Underwood]

Looking to replace several electric Dewalt ROS, in which I've replaced many a brush, switch, cord, bearings and pads.... They've just about had it.

And now the guys are fighting over the one MP air powered ROS and letting the old Milwaukee air powered ROS sit in the drawer, and are kind of "ho hum" about the old Dynabrades (which all the salesmen seem to love anyway).

So I went looking around but figured if anyone knew what a good deal was, you guys would...

Can you tell me what you like in a 5 inch diameter air powered ROS?

(I hope this isn't against the TOS? If so, then feel free to bop this thread off into never-never land.)

[Steven Hsieh]

These air powered sanders wont leave swirl marks like power orbit sander do.
However depending what your doing, you will need a compressor to keep up air demands of the air sander

[Jim Underwood]

Got the compressor/s covered...

Just need advice on air powered orbital sanders.

[Prashun Patel]

The Mirka Ceros might be worth a look.

[J.R. Rutter]

The only sanders that I've bought since I moved away from electric have been a couple of the 3M and a Dynabrade Silver Supreme. I tried a Grizzly, but only use it for heavy stock removal/abuse. My approach has been to craigslist them once the bearings start to go after a year or two. The guys gravitate to whatever is running the smoothest (understandably).

[Larry Edgerton]

A sander I use a lot is a Hutchins randon orbit air board. Its not a straight line sander like an air file but a random orbit. Not sure what kind of work you are doing but for flattening panels that is awesome. I have a 3" SnapOn DA that sees a lot of use on smaller details as well.

5" I have a Souix, and a Dynabrade and I would say they are dead even. I would be interested to hear from someone that already has air sanders what they think of the Mirka Ceros myself, or if any other sander is faster.

Larry

[Jim Underwood]

As I'm doing a little research on these things I'm noticing the that ones that are advertised as "agressive" have a larger orbital pattern - 5/16". The fine finishing sanders have a smaller orbital pattern of 3/32", while the standard orbital pattern is 3/16".

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll be looking these over seriously... (And have you got a look at the electric Mirka set? Good NIGHT! $500?!!!!) The Boss would have a cow!

[David Kumm]

3/16 orbit handles about 75% of my sanding. 3/32 is nice for the final grit and smaller 3.5 heads, and 3/8 is hard to handle but very aggressive and used mainly for the first grit on maple, hickory,etc. Vacuum is a must. As is an air dryer if in a humid climate. Dave

[Jim Underwood]

So Dave, what kind of air sanders are you using?

As for air supply, you are correct, the air sanders use quite a bit of air...
With two compressors (one Ingersoll piston, one Kaeser screw compressor), wet tank, and multiple water separators, a large refrigerant dryer, and a dry tank, I think I have the clean dry air supply licked. Course if I get five sanders and two spray booths running full blast, I may have to add another Kaeser to the line-up....

Most hobbyists don't have all that at their disposal. At my home shop I have yet to put a water separator in... That will probably change when I put the compressor and cyclone in the addition.

[Alan Schaffter]

Got two Dynabrades- work great! Don't use my electric PC ROS any more. Smooth action, less vibration, smaller size, fits hand better, lighter weight, easier to hold, easy to rebuild (at least Dynabrade). Three dust options- non, self (venturi), and central vac.

[David Kumm]

Jim, I use dynabrades primarily and a few 3m sanders. The dynabrades allow for a 1.25 od clear hose to fit their vac hose with integrated air. Makes dust collection easier to use the same brand so I don't experiment much. Dave

[David Sharp]

I was reluctant to spend the extra money on a Hutchins but, finally did. I would have to say it was worth the extra money. I use it 8-10 hours a day with no problems. They look a lot like a Dynabride but the Dyna is about 2/3 the price. I have never used a Dynabride so I can't comment on its quality. I have been looking at the Mirka since I need to paint a boat and there is no compressed air. I'm having a hard time with the price, though.

[Jim Underwood]

Here are two I'm considering:
The Dynabrade "Silver Supreme" 69020 5" ROS (.26 HP) from Amazon for $146 (with free shipping),
or the Dynabrade "Spirit" 59020 5" ROS (.25 HP) from Klingspor for $139 (+ shipping?). For a couple bucks more I get free shipping, and a slightly more powerful sander. I could get the Dynorbital Supreme 56815 (.28 HP) locally for $166, but I'd still have to pay their shipping, because they don't stock any of these sanders... (And Amazon has it priced at $179 - $199)

[David Kumm]

Jim, I would go for the Supreme for the 3/16 orbit as it will be used most. It is heavier however if that is a consideration. My lesser used ones are all spirits which are really comfortable but lighter. I don't think it is hard to rebuild them. By the way, you can't change pad size as each sander is balanced for the size pad it is sold with. Or so they say. I would buy a box of the little filters because it won't add to the shipping cost and are cheap. Dave

[Jim Underwood]

David,
The only difference I can see between these three I mention are the HP. They are all 12K RPM, 3/16" orbit. I was just out in the shop looking at the ones we have. The ones that still work are two 59020 (3/16" orbit Spirits), and an MP brand. Every one fights over the MP since it's quieter, lighter, and has less vibration. It has the same orbit and RPM as the 59020. I can't find an MP brand for sale anywhere. Evidently it's a cheapie that just happened to be an exception to the rule. (The other two MPs have long since bit the dust.) I also have two Red Sioux (which I mistakenly called Milwaukees above) which are really big and clunky. No one wants to use these...

+1 on the filters though.. some maniac removed the filter and muffler off of one of the 59020 ROS and it screams like a banshee. I couldn't listen to that all day...

[Thomas Hotchkin]

In our aircraft paint shop we started using 3M model 20322 ROS about two years ago. Production crew likes them better then the Dynabrades that they replaced. We have about 10 3M sanders right now. Our shop mechanic is not doing half the repairs on the 3m's as he did on Dynabrade. Just my two cents. Tom

[Jim Underwood]

Oh well.... Just pulled the trigger on 2 of the Dynabrade 69020, which has a steel motor. Should have less vibration than the slightly lighter composite based motor in the current 59020.

We'll see...

Got replacement mufflers too. That should help the noise problem with the 59020.

I suppose you need the smaller orbit that your 3M sander has for painting aircraft. We're sanding cabinets, so we can afford to be a little more agressive with the 3/16 orbit.

Thanks for all your input. I'll try to remember to report back in a month or so, and let you know how these turn out.

[Josiah Bartlett]

One of the things the cheap air sanders don't have is a muffler and/or an exhaust trap. An open port is loud, which is annoying, but even worse than that, any water or oil that comes out the exhaust spews right onto your work. Since you are supposed to keep air tools oiled, this can be a problem.